Convention to Combat Desertification: Report of the international workshop on climate and land degradation

An international workshop on climate and land degradation organized by the World Meteorological Organization, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and the Tanzania Meteorological Agency was held in Arusha, United Republic of Tanzania, from 11 to 15 December 2006. The workshop focused on how climate induces and influences land degradation and what measures need to be taken to enhance the applications of weather and climate information to combat land degradation. One of the key recommendations made by the workshop was that the network of climatological, hydrological and agrometeorological stations around the world should be increased and strengthened to provide data on rainfall intensities, soil temperature, and soil moisture for land degradation monitoring, assessment and for the implementation of the national action programmes to combat desertification. Climatological and hydrological end products should be developed in coordination with end-users? needs by relevant and competent personnel and institutions.